Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says Jamaica has scored another first by being next year’s host of the inaugural United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Global Conference on Tourism Development and Sustainability. Speaking to JIS News following the opening session of the ‘Gastronomy of Fats and Oils: The Art of Choosing, Preparing and Cooking Good Food’ seminar at the...

Gastronomy, which is the art of eating and drinking, is to be the focus of a seminar organised by the Tourism Ministry, as it utilises innovative ways to grow the tourism industry. Promoted through the Ministry’s Tourism Linkages Network, the seminar, dubbed ‘Gastronomy of Fats and Oils – The Art of Choosing, Preparing and Cooking Good Food’, will be held...

With Hurricane Matthew – now a Category 4 system – heading towards Jamaica, the Ministry of Tourism has activated its Tourism Emergency Operations Centre (TEOC), which is currently coordinating emergency services for the local tourism sector. Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, underscored that "we have decided to activate the centre at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in Kingston. It is...

The Ministry of Health is aiming to attract over 100,000 medical tourists to the island within the next 10 years. Director of Policy Planning and Development in the Ministry, Howard Lynch, said the sector has the potential to provide tremendous economic benefits to the country. “At a growth rate of 20 per cent in 10 years, it is estimated that...

The Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) has launched a National Community Tourism Portal, which is a web-based platform to promote licensed community-based tourism enterprises across the island. The portal, launched at the Devonshire at Devon House in St. Andrew, today (September 28), is part of the Government’s US$15-million Rural Economic Development Initiative (REDI) project, being implemented by JSIF through funding...

Cabinet has approved the transfer of ownership of the Montego Bay Convention Centre in Rose Hall, St. James, to the Ministries of Finance and the Public Service, and Tourism. The management, operation and marketing of the facility will be handled by the Ministry of Tourism. Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, who made the disclosure at a recent JIS Think...

Executive Director of the Jamaica Council for Persons with Disabilities (JCPD), Christine Hendricks, is lauding the Tourism Ministry for enabling access to some of the island’s best beaches by the physically challenged. Mrs. Hendricks noted that retrofitting the Boston Beach in Portland with wheelchair ramps and international standard design for bathroom fixtures as part of the Ministry’s National Beach Development...